Abstract.
The low-rainfall ecologies of the northern fringes of Nigeria are prone to desertification and sand dune activities that are phenomenal and extensive. Stabilization structures put in place by various governmental and non-governmental agencies to check desertification in northwestern Nigeria were evaluated with respect to efficiency, impact on soil development and yield of millet. The study focused on the active and stabilized sand dune formations in NW Nigeria. Various stabilization techniques were identified within Gidan Kaura (the study site) and results were compared with an unstabilized sand dune (control site). Results obtained indicated that the sand dunes within the study area are still active despite the numerous stabilization structures, some of which were established over 15 years ago. Shelterbelts were the most effective techniques in sand dune stabilization and soil development when properly sited across wind direction. Shelterbelts recorded significantly higher levels of pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, exchangeable bases and micronutrients except for copper, when compared with all other treatments. The least effective of all the structures was mechanical fencing, probably due to the inadequate quantity of plant residues used in its construction. The impact of the various structures on the physical and chemical soil properties was evaluated for surface soils as were the structures on the yield of millet in stabilized dunes and non-dune areas. The results are discussed in depth in this paper.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adejuwan, J.O. and Adesina, F.A.: 1990, ‘Organic matter and nutrient status under cultivated fallows: An example of Gliricidia sepium fallows from southwestern Nigeria’, Agroforestry Syst. 10, 23–32.
Belsky, A.J., Mwonga, S.M., Amundson, R.G., Duxbury, J.M. and Ali, A.R.: 1993, ‘Comparative effects of isolated trees on their under canopy environments in high-and low-rainfall savannas’, J. Appl. Ecol. 30, 143–155.
Bray, R.H. and Kurtz, L.T.: 1945, ‘Determination of total, organic and available forms of phosphorus in soils’, Soil Sci. 59, 39–45.
Drechsel, P., Glaser, B. and Zech, W.: 1991, ‘Effect of four multipurpose tree species on soil amelioration during tree fallow in central Togo’, Agroforestry Syst. 16, 193–202.
Dregne, H.E.: 1983, Desertification of Arid Lands, Harwood Academic Publishers. Chur, Switzerland.
Dregne, H.E.: 1985, ‘Aridity and land degradation’, Environment 27(8), 16–33.
Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN): 1992, 1992 Annual Report of the Shelterbelt Research Station, Kano.
Gee, G.W. and Bauder, J.W.: 1986, ‘Particle-size Analysis’, in: A. Klute (ed), Methods of Soil Analysis. Part 1. Physical and Mineralogical Methods, 2nd edn. Agronomy. 9, 383–411.
Igboanugo, A.B.I.: 1992, ‘Advances in the Control of Desertification with Particular Reference to Savanna Region of Nigeria’, in: J.O. Adegbehin and R.A. Gbadegeshin (eds), Proceedings of the National Forestry Training Workshop on Strategies for the Management of Endangered Environment and Species, NAERLS, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, p. 123.
IITA: 1979, Selected Methods for Soil and Plant Analysis, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Manual Series No. 1, pp. 76.
Iyamabo, D.E.: 1973, Effects of Pines caribaea on Basaltic Soil in Mangu, Jos Plateau, Nigeria. Savanna Forestry Research Station, Samaru, Nigeria, Res. Paper No. 22, pp. 9.
Kadeba, O. and Aduayi, E.A.: 1985, ‘Impact on soils of plantations of Pines caribaea stands in natural tropical savannas’, For. Ecol. Manage. 13, 27–39.
Kang, B.T., Akinnifesi, F.K. and Ladipo, D.O.: 1994, ‘Performance of selected woody agroforestry species grown on an alfisol and ultisol in the humid lowland of West Africa, and their effects on soil properties’, J. Tropic. For. Sci. 7, 303–313.
Kater, L.J.M., Kante, S. and Budelman, A.: 1992, ‘Karite (Vitellaria paradoxa) and nere (Parkia biglobosa) associated with crops in South Mali’, Agroforestry Syst. 18, 89–105.
Kogbr, C.A.: 1979, ‘Geology of southeastern (Sokoto) sector of the Iullemenden Basin’, Bull. Dep. Geol. 2, 420. Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Kparmwang, T.V., Chude, O., Raji, B.A. and Odunze, A.C.: 2000, ‘Extractable micronutrients in some soils developed on sandstone and shale in the Benue valley, Nigeria’, Niger. J. Soil Res. 1, 42–48.
Malik, R.S. and Sharma, S.K.: 1990, ‘Moisture extraction and crop yield as a function of distance from a row of Eucalyptus tereticornis’, Agroforestry Syst. 12, 187–195.
Melhorn, W.N. and Trexler, D.T.: 1982, ‘The Maria Effect: Equilibrium and Activation of Aeolian Processes in the Great Basin of Nevada’, (Abstract) in: D.O. Doehring (ed), Geomorphology in Arid Regions, George Allen and Unwin, London, 271 pp.
Murphy, T. and Riley, J.P.: 1962, ‘A modified single solution method for the determination of phosphate in natural water’, Anal. Chim. Acta 27, 31–36.
Nelson, D.W and Sommers, L.E.: 1982, ‘Total C, Organic C and Organic Matter’, in: A. L. Page, R.H. Miller and D.R. Keeney (eds), Methods of Soil Analysis. Part 2, Chemical and Microbiological Properties, 2nd edn.’ Agronomy 9, 539—579.
Okorio, J., Byenkya, S., Wajja, N. and Peden, D.: 1994, ‘Comparative performance of seventeen upperstorey tree species associated with crop in the highlands of Uganda’, Agroforestry Syst. 26, 185–203.
Onyewotu, L.O.Z., Ogigirigi, M.A. and Stigter, C.J.: 1994, ‘A study of competitive effects between Eucalyptus camaldulensis shelterbelt and an adjacent millet (Pennisetum typhoides) crop’, Agric, Ecosyst. Environ. 51(3), 281–286.
Raji, B.A.: 1995, Pedogenesis of Ancient Sand Dune Soils in Northwestern Nigeria, Unpublished Ph.D Thesis, Department of Soil Science, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, 186 pp.
Raji, B.A., Esu, I.E. and Chude, V.O.: 1998, ‘DTPA, 0.1 M HCl and total Fe and Mn in three contiguous sand dune soil profiles of Nigerian semi-arid savanna’, J. Arid Environ. 38(4), 585– 596.
Raji, B.A., Chude, V.O. and Esu, I.E.: 2001, ‘DTPA, 0.1 M HCl and total Cu and Zn in sand dune soil profiles of Nigerian semi-arid savanna’, Afr. Soils 32 (1): 50–64.
Raji, B.A., Esu, I.E., Chude, V.O., Owonubi, J.J. and Kparmwang, T.: 1996, ‘Properties, classification and management implications of soils of Illela Dunes, NW Nigeria’, J. Sci. Food Agric. 70, 425–432.
Richards, L.A.: 1954, Diagnosis and Improvement of Saline and Alkali Soils, USDA Handbook 60, U.S. Govt. Printing Office, Washington DC, 503 pp.
Siaw, D., Kang, B.T. and Okali, D.: 1991, ‘Alley cropping with Leucaena luucocephala (Lam) De wit and Acioa barteri (Hook. F.) Engl’, Agroforestry Syst. 14, 219–231.
Sombroek, W.G. and Zonneveld, I.S.: 1971, ‘Ancient Dune Fields and Fluvial Deposits in the Rima-Sokoto River Basin (NW Nigeria)’,Soil Survey Report No. 5, The Netherlands Soil Survey Institute, Wageningen, 43 pp.
Trouve, C., Mariott, A., Schwartz, D. and Guillet, B.: 1994, ‘Soil organic carbon dynamics under Eucalyptus and Pines planted on savannas in the Congo’, Soil Biol. Biochem. 26, 287–295.
Ujah, J. and Adeoye, K.B.: 1984, ‘Effects of shelterbelts in the Sudan Savanna zone of Nigeria on microclimate and yield of millet’, Agric. For. Meteorol. 33, 99–107.
Williams, C.H.: 1980, ‘Soil acidification under clover pasture’, Aust. J. Exp. Agric. Anim. Husbandry 20, 561–567.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Raji, B.A., Uyovbisere, E.O. & Momodu, A.B. Impact of Sand Dune Stabilization Structures on Soil and Yield of Millet in the Semi-Arid Region of NW Nigeria. Environ Monit Assess 99, 181–196 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-004-4018-2
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-004-4018-2